WAIT AND SEE

Things aren't looking up, are they? Granted, the Cubs have a leadoff man who should get the job done. (Although, let's face it - he hasn't been hurt in years, so I'm betting he'll go down by the end of March.) But what they do have is a young shortstop who batted something like .370 at Triple A last year, and a young left fielder who has done nothing but hit well at every level he's played. That would seem like good news - so good, in fact, that we should be able to ignore the lack of a right fielder at the moment.

Except, unfortunately, the Cubs have a manager who will almost certainly not start both of those young players. Instead of Murton and Cedeno, we're likely to get Mabry and Neifi.

This prospect has left a lot of Cubs fans dejected. It doesn't help that the most obvious answer to the hole in right field is Jacque Jones, a guy who, in no uncertain terms, sucks ass. While that's bad enough, it'll be worse because Hendry will almost certainly lock him up to a two year deal if he signs him. As much as I hate to say it, a better choice might be Juan Encarnacion, who isn't exactly a heroic solution himself. But he's younger and better than Jones. But who else is available? Todd Hollandsworth? Preston Wilson? Yuck.

I'm not Crazy Al Yellon, but I think that the Cubs are likely to make at least one more decent move before the season starts. I would be shocked if there wasn't a trade somewhere for some player who hasn't been on anyone's radar. The Cubs don't need a right fielder or a middle infielder with the ability to change the course of a game. They just need a solid guy who will do more good than he will bad, and I think those guys are available somewhere. We'll just have to wait and see.

THE CUBS BLOG REVIEW

I was surfing the net a few minutes ago, when I realized something. I almost never go to the official Cubs site anymore. I guess I'm sick of reading the company line. In fact, although I've been desperate for trade news, it hadn't occurred to me to check the Cubs site until a few minutes ago, regardless of the fact that it might have breaking news first.

Then, I started to think about all the Cubs sites and blogs. It used to be that, when the Cubs were doing well, I had the tendency to go to every blog every day, and to hit all the news sites at least once. These days, I have a much smaller selection. I read Al Yellon's blog, I read the blogs of my Goat Riding cohorts, when I can remember I read Ivy Chat, I visit Desipio prolifically, and really that's just about it. Actually, I wish I went to View From the Bleachers more often. It's still an entertaining site. But mostly, I seem to get my fill on Cubs news from the Desipio boards these days.

So, what about everyone else? Do they still post? Hell, I only post on Goat Riders, for the most part. I expect that will change with the start of the new season, but who knows? So, here's a quick run-down on all the blogs I have listed on my site (except for a few that are never updated).

The Cub Reporter - This site remains the most popular (and I believe it continues to grow in that regard), but I rarely read it anymore. I feel like it has lost its' personality. Also, to be honest, I remain a little offended that they cut other Cubs blogs from their links. It's one thing to cut the inactive sites, it's another thing to discard the others for reasons I can only assume are "snotty." So, these days, the Cub Reporter is not a must read. In fact, I think it sort of sucks. (Don't get me wrong, guys. I still think the Cub Reporter is better than CFN or GROTA. But it's not at the same level it used to be.)

Bleed Cubbie Blue - A must read. Al Yellon has forgotten more about Cubs blogging than I will ever know.

Ivy Chat - I have never known a bigger jerk than Chuck Gittles. I don't know how he can justify existing, once you consider the gaze of his beady little eyes, his disgusting smirk, and that odd smell that accompanies him wherever he goes. Chuck, you belong in the sewer. Just kidding. Ivy Chat is one of the half dozen or so blogs I keep up with on a fairly regular basis. It's regularly updated and the writing is very entertaining. And I love the Andy McPhail picture on the right hand side of the screen. If you don't look too close, it genuinely looks like some poor schmuck is trying to maintain calm and order while realizing that the entire thing is a big charade. Cheers to you Chuck, you cheese master! Oh, and uh, damn you for refusing GROTA. Damn you to hell!

The Uncouth Sloth - Rob Letterly is hilarious at times, poignant at others. His blog is a reason I blog, and I'm glad he's a writer for GROTA. I visit the Uncouth Sloth more than any other Cubs blog, and I doubt that will ever change.

Desipio Media Ventures - Better than anything else out there. You have to read it. You have to join the message boards. You have to post there. Desipio is king.

Northside Lounge - Inactive since October 27. This was an award-winning blog that has sort of slowed down in the last year or so. I enjoy the writing there, and once invited Scott Lange to write for GROTA, but was turned down. To my chagrin, Lang later accepted an invitation to write for the Baseball Think Factory, which leads me to wonder if I don't have some sort of funky smell that keeps some guys away from GROTA. Scott has been posting on his new blog two or three times a week.

Cubsnet - Probably the second or third-most read Cubs blog on the net, Cubsnet has never done it for me. Too much news, not enough commentary. It's also not a very pretty site.

Just North of Wrigley Field - I really like the writing of James and Chris, but these guys don't update often enough. If they updated three or four times a week, they could have one of the most popular Cubs blogs on the net, even if half their content is Seattle-based.

The Peoria Northsider Report - An interesting blog that gets overlooked. These guys are insightful, analytical, and colorful (in more ways than one), but, as much as I hate to say it, their blog looks kind of dull. I wish they would put together a few bucks, buy a domain, and design their own site. Looks aren't everything, but I believe they help.

97 Years and Counting - Sporadic posts at best by one of the Desipio faithful. Mike D is a good writer who, like myself, needs to blog more. 'nuff said.

Cubs Pundit (renamed "Fire Dusty Baker") - Inactive since April 23rd. Come back, Mike. You were good.

Let's Play Two - One of the original GOOD Cubs blogs, LP2 has been inactive for quite a while, probably because the writer has a young son. Again, this is a quality blog that I miss.

Yarbage Cub Review - I used to read the YCR often back when I first discovered blogs. I like Chris quite a bit, and designed his logo, but for some reason his still-updated blog has fallen out of my rotation. I think that, once I feel better about the Cubs, I'll start reading his stuff again a little more often.

The Waveland Chronicles - I've really enjoyed reading this blog, but inconsistent updates have taken it out of my rotation. I had the chance to meet Ken outside Wrigley Field this past summer, but he seemed unimpressed with me.

Tom Smith's Cubs Blog - I've never really read this site. I liked the first headline I saw, "Friends don't let friends sign Raffy Furcal." Funny. Smith has been blogging since April 13th of 2002, which is very respectable. He also makes no pretensions about his blogging... there are few long articles. In other words, it's a real blog, not a blog that wants to be a news source. *cough* Anyway, this site deserves another look, but would also benefit from a redesign.

Aisle 528 - Gone for more than a year. Guess I have to take it down soon.

The Big Red C - Retired. One of the best. Again, I once asked Derek Smart to blog for GROTA, but he shot me down. Then, he was invited to blog for the Cub Reporter, and he jumped at the chance. But I'm not bitter. (Really I'm not. That was just for comedic effect.)

14 Days of Ambivalence - I've never really read this site, but it's interesting. It's also unupdated since early November, and could do with a site redesign, but the writing is good.

1060west - A lot of contributors, but a weak site design is preventing 1060west from becoming well-known. This site is updated a LOT, though, and should be on everyone's reading list for that reason alone. It also seems pretty well-written.

Baseball Diamond News - This site is well written and pretty regularly updated. Greg Abcarian is a gem who, sooner or later, will get snatched up by one of the bigger conglomerate sites like The Cub Reporter or View from the Bleachers. Enjoy BDN while you can, folks.

A Cub Fan Rants - This is a site that makes the most of a simple design. ACFR needs a logo, but I like the colors and use of pictures. It's updated about as often as this site is, but is better written. This is another guy who, if properly motivated, could be one of the better writers of the Cubs Blogger Nation.

Wrigley Ravings - No updates since May. I suppose he must be a victim of Cub suckage, or perhaps a lack of interest. Unfortunate, because his posts were good.

Cubs Ramble - Also lacking of the updates.

Deep Within the Vault - Retired, I suppose.

End the Drought - Retired as well.

Friendly Confines - An informative blog that is updated regularly. I'm not big on the design, but this site deserves more props than it gets.

The Rooftop Report - I love the site design. I don't love the lack of updates. This blogger was once a member of the GROTA family, but was replaced after showing a complete lack of interest. As a consequence, I notice that GROTA is not linked on the site. But, to be fair, we do link TRR on GROTA. *shrugs*

Wrigley Field Jail Cell - Cute name, but the site design is unseemly. Herboturbo has fairly regular updates, and a somewhat twisted sense of humor (which I respect).

Cubbies Baseball - I don't love the name, but the site has some snaz. They have a healthy list of advertisers, a message board, and some really in-depth writing. Worth a look or two.

Cubscast.com - I enjoy this site, but don't visit it enough. Maybe we need to do podcasting at GROTA, too. Hmmm.

The Chicago National League Ball Club - Could use a better name. The site isn't updated enough, has a pretty common design, suffers from short posts, and is very well written. Someone get DBrown on the phone and force him to blog about the Cubs some more!

From the Corner of Grace and Wayne - What can I say? I'm biased, but Jason is freaking hilarious. Go read his blog. Then read his posts at GROTA. Then, force him to write more articles for GROTA. Feel free to do so at knifepoint.

The Cubby Corner - Well written, and hopefully updated more often. This site could benefit from a redesign, but I like the logo and the colors. So, maybe I'm just being snippy.

Cubs Fun - An enjoyable blog that has taken photoshop to a new level. Unfortunately, I think they're running out of material. Regardless, it's a site that's always worth a look.

True Blue - A decent site, but it hasn't been updated in a while.

And, that's that.

A year or so ago, I conceived of the notion to have an Iron Cubs Blog contest. The idea would be, three judges review and vote on every Cubs blog out there. The three winners would've been the Iron Cubs Bloggers, whose site I would have designed an award logo of some kind. It never came off the ground, however, because reading and reviewing all those blogs would have taken forever, and nobody wanted to critcize everybody else. So, maybe I'm taking a risk because I didn't just say nice things about the blogs above.

However, I really like my Cub Blog Bretheren, and I think they should be thick skinned enough to take my meager criticsm, as well as my vast compliments. I believe the Cub Blog Nation should be a community, even when we don't always see eye-to-eye. So, I might just assign an Iron Blogger award to some of these guys anyway, for my own undisclosed, nefarious reasons. Why not, after all?